An intimate Thursday wedding with a few friends and a ton of love.
I asked Nena a few questions about how they met, their proposal and wedding planning. Instead of re-writing it for you, I’m posting her answers as is. She did a great job of writing for me (thanks Nena!)
We met through a musical project called For The Sender (http://www.forthesender.com). Deane is the lead guitarist for the project, and I am one of the singer/songwriters. It’s a unique group of musicians and songwriters from different genres and backgrounds brought together by our mutual friend, Alex Woodard (whose house we had our ceremony at.) We all collaborate together, creating songs based around letters sent to Alex and the stories in those letters, and through it we all became kind of a family. Deane and I were simply professional acquaintances…we didn’t really take any interest in each other until several years into the project, when I asked him to co-write a song with me of my own, and we started developing a friendship. He now plays guitar in my band (http://www.nenaanderson.com) as well…he is my compliment musically and personally.
Apparently he had the ring for a while (before we got engaged) and was trying to pick the right time and place…he knew I wouldn’t be interested in a big public thing…and he didn’t want it to be overshadowed or part of a holiday. He ended up proposing to me on New Year’s Day at his home in Elfin Forest, with Bill Evan’s “Waltz for Debbie” on the record player, and plenty of joyful tears! To me it was perfect.
We had originally planned on getting married that same fall, but ended up moving to a new house instead! Rather than stress with the logistics of both the wedding and moving, we changed the wedding date to May the following year. I’m half-Chinese, and May 11 is an auspicious wedding day on the Chinese calendar. So, technically: 1 year, 5 months, and 11 days later we were married.
We both wanted the wedding to be intimate, informal, close to home, and to include our children. Other priorities were throwing a fun party with GREAT food, and including the talents of my amazing friends for flowers (http://www.asmithfloral.com), photography ( http://www.jenniferdery.com ), officiant, hair, wedding party gifts (http://www.nightowlleatherworks.com), and music (Adrian Demain, Jim Austin, Bobby Furgo). Their contributions made it all that much more special. Everything was accomplished, from the intimate ceremony at our friend’s house to a warm atmosphere and excellent menu provided to us by Solace & Moonlight Lounge (http://www.eatatsolace.com). It was truly inclusive and we felt so much love and support.
My favorite part of the wedding day? I will never forget the beautiful Family Blending portion of our ceremony where we included our kids, and my son wearing a suit for the first time as he walked me down the aisle. I loved having my Maid of Honor/Best Friend with her 3 little girls dressing and preparing with us before the wedding with their innocent joy and awe of pretty dresses, flowers and jewelry. And dancing with Deane for one song to open up the dance floor…because he doesn’t dance. Yet!
Congrats Nena & Deane!